Has anyone been to or seen the renovations going on at the Budapest Marriott? I've known that renovations have been going on for a while. But, I just heard a vicious rumor that the balconies are gone! We are staying there for free (using reward points), so I'm not going to be too picky. But, I need to make sure the stay will be reasonable! Thanks!

Can anybody let us know if the balconies are still there at the Marriott? I sure hope this is just a crazy rumor.

Believe it or not, I actually got the email of the front office manager. I sent him a message expressing my concerns. He did say that all rooms were to be done by the date of our travel (first week in September). His comment was "we will not any longer have all rooms with balconies, we will only have some suites with balcony". So, not entirely sure what that means. Unfortuantly, I've lowered my expectations to being happy with the beautiful view. I hope I'm pleasantly surprised when I get in my room!

I will say that he was very quick to respond to my email and very, very pleasant. That is a huge plus in my book!

I'd still love to hear from anyone with recent experience.

This is very disturbing news, because I was counting on a standard room with a magnificent balcony. My trip isn't until September 2008, but I may decide to book elsewhere if I can't get one of those great balconies. Thanks so much for the update.

We were just at the Budapest Marriott the end of July and weren't the least bit put off by the lack of a balcony in a remodeled room. The view was phenomenal. The bed had a ton of pillows and the flat screen TV was quite good also.

The remodeling was still going on and it looked like there was a lot left to do.

Based on the location, the view and the comfort, I'd stick this accommodation as my choice.

patianta.....thanks for the update. You're right, the view is what is really important. I'm putting the Marriott back on my list of preferred hotels for Budapest. Thanks for posting this update.

You're welcome, marthag. However, I just came across someone else's post elsewhere that may be a possibility for others, it said:

"Our hotel,which is rated very high by tripadvisor was the Marriott Millenium Executive Apartments.There are reviews of the hotel on tripadvisor.It is owned by the Marriott,about 1 block away from the big Marriott and only cost us 85 euro a night incl breakfast.I did make our hotel reservation about 7 mos in advance on the net. We just got the bill on our credit card and it came to about $142.00 usd once all the taxes etc were charged.We had a 3 room suite that was just beautiful. It is located 1/2 block from Vaci Utca (shopping street),near the Elizabeth bridge,only 1 block from the river."

Patlanta, thank you for your response. I feel a bit better! We leave in a few days, I'll report back.